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Homelessness is a global challenge.

The United Nations Human Settlements Program estimates that 1.1 billion people live in inadequate housing, and the best data available suggest that more than 100 million people have no housing at all.

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Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer experiences of homelessness and identity: insecurity and home(o)normativity

Peter Matthews

Christopher Poyner

Richard Kjellgren

Homelessness among the young lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans* (LGBT+) population is becoming an increasing societal concern, with alarmist reporting of high rates of homelessness compared to heterosexual people. This paper presents qualitative evidence from research with 20 LGBT+ people who had experienced homelessness in Scotland, Ireland. Significantly, it moves the discussion of LGBT + homelessness out of a concern with...

Ending Street Homelessness: What Works and Why We Don’t Do It

Peter Mackie

Sarah Johnsen

Jenny Wood

Vast human and financial resources have been spent in efforts to understand and address street homelessness. Yet, the problem persists. This think piece summarises the findings of a major review exploring the international evidence base on what works to end street homelessness. It also reflects on the question: ‘if we know what works, why don’t we do it?’ Informed by more than 500 literature sources and interviews with 11 ...

Mean Streets: A report on the criminalization of homelessness in Europe

Living and sleeping rough in public spaces constitute a huge risk to one’s health, social well-being, and security. Everyone, including people experiencing homelessness, would prefer adequate and safe housing if it were available and affordable. Laws, regulations and administrative measures penalizing homelessness are being introduced during an economic crisis that has resulted in record levels of unemployment and poverty,...

Women at St. Mungo's – A three year strategy for 2019-2022

St. Mungo's

St. Mungo's core challenge is creating an environment of physical and psychological safety for female clients. Their new strategic plan aims to ensure that each of their female clients has a safe place to live and feels safe while receiving support services. According to St. Mungo's, establishing safety is the foundation for recovery and the only way to successfully achieve positive outcomes for women experiencing...

Ending Homelessness Together: Homelessness Strategy for Northern Ireland 2017-22

Ending homelessness together, a homelessness strategy for Northern Ireland 2017-22 builds upon the work of the previous strategies with the following objectives: 1. To prioritize homelessness prevention 2. To secure sustainable accommodation and appropriate support solutions for homeless households 3. To further understand and address the complexities of chronic homelessness across Northern Ireland 4. To ensure the right...

Homelessness Prevention: Reflecting on a year of pioneering Welsh legislation in practice

Peter Mackie

Ian Thomas

Jennie Bibbings

Homelessness prevention has become the dominant policy paradigm for homelessness services across the developed world. However, services have emerged in a piecemeal and selective manner, often restricted to particular towns and cities, with no requirement on local authorities to intervene. Wales is believed to be the first country where the government has sought to fully reorient services towards prevention and to make...

Young Families in the Homeless Crisis: Challenges and Solutions

Sharon Lambert

Daniel O’Callaghan

Owen Jump

The purpose of this study is to understand the housing and support needs of young parents (aged 18–24 years) whose first step away from home of origin leads to experiencing homelessness and being accommodated in emergency accommodation.

Fourth Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe

With this 4th report on homelessness and housing exclusion, FEANTSA and the Abbé Pierre Foundation ask: what is meant with "European cohesion” when another Europe, deprived of a home or even a shelter, is being left behind? This report explores the state of emergency housing in Europe, in order to attract the attention of all decision-making bodies in Europe on the overcrowding, precariousness and inadequacy our shelter...

Harmonisation of Definitions of Homelessness for UK Official Statistics: A Feasibility Report

GSS Harmonisation Team

Homelessness statistics differ across the countries of the UK because homelessness and housing are addressed through local jurisdictions. Homelessness data is often collected through administrative systems which were built using definitions based on each country’s legislation, and so data are not currently comparable. This report investigates the feasibility of harmonizing UK definitions of homelessness and evaluates methods...

Home for Good: the role of floating support in ending rough sleeping

St. Mungo's

Floating support is provided in someone’s home, and helps them to manage their tenancy. People are linked up to a caseworker who will work with them to come up with a personalized plan. This research found that there has been a dramatic reduction in funding for these services over the past five years. St. Mungo's Home for Good campaign is calling on the government to put an end to rough sleeping by ensuring that everyone gets...

The Homelessness Monitor: Scotland 2019

The homelessness monitor is a longitudinal study providing an independent analysis of the impact of recent economic and policy developments on homelessness across the UK. This year’s Scotland Monitor comes at a pivotal moment for homelessness policy and practice in Scotland. It also highlights emerging trends and forecasts some of the likely future changes, identifying the developments likely to have the most significant...

Housing First in Aotearoa New Zealand: Challenges and Future Directions

Sho Isogai

This article discusses the challenges of implementing the Housing First model in New Zealand and provides recommendations and future directions. In Aotearoa, there is a movement towards implementing the HF approach to house people with chronic homelessness in many regions and has been implemented by government-supported agencies as part of a strategy to end homelessness in local communities. Housing First programs were...

Homelessness in 2030: Essays on possible futures

Volker Busch-Geertsema

This is a collection of essays that includes a wide range of scenarios: from the optimistic to the dystopian, from the pragmatic to the idealistic, and many more in between. The idea of this book is to distill the wisdom needed to end homelessness from all the knowledge the leading researchers have gained from their extensive work. The collection of essays includes a wide range of scenarios: from the optimistic to the...

Supported Lodgings

Beth Watts

Janice Blenkinsopp

Supported Lodgings schemes provide young people with a room of their own in the home of a vetted and trained private household, with support to the ‘host’ household(er) and young person provided by a specialist organization. They are one form of ‘community hosting’ model, that utilize community assets to provide young people in need of accommodation with a home and support. Increasing interest in community hosting across the...

Ethical Renting

the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless

Abbé Pierre Foundation

As part of FEANTSA and the Fondation Abbé Pierre's series on Access to Decent and Afforable Housing in Europe: Case Studies and Innovative Solutions, this publication looks at how to mobile the private rental market to provide social solutions in Europe. They ask the question: what actions can we take to transform housing, from what is increasingly being seen and used as an asset and a financial product, into a guaranteed...

Supporting Affordable Housing Supply: Inclusionary Planning in New and Renewing Communities

Nicole Gurran

Catherine Gilbert

Kenneth Gibb

Ryan van den Nouwelant

Amity James Curtin

Peter Phibbs

This study examined how land use planning mechanisms can support affordable housing inclusion within new and renewing communities. It found that 'inclusionary planning' tools leverage significant quantities of affordable housing supply in many parts of the UK and US. For instance, 12,866 affordable housing units (43% of total affordable housing output) were delivered through inclusionary planning requirements in England...

Tackling the Under Supply of Housing in England

Wendy Wilson

Cassie Barton

This briefing paper discusses the need for new housing in England and trends in housing supply, as well as barriers and solutions. Estimates have put the number of new homes needed in England at between 240,000 and 340,000 per year, accounting for new household formation and a backlog of existing need for suitable housing. In 2017/18, the total housing stock in England increased by around 222,000 homes. This was 2% higher...

Everyone Counts: 2018 Point-in-Time Count

The 2018 PiT Count is partially funded by the Government of Canada’s HPS. This is the second time the HPS has provided funding to conduct a nation-wide PiT Count and the first time the City of Kamloops has participated. Through a call for applications issued to the community in September 2017, two coordinators were contracted to coordinate the count—an Indigenous Engagement Coordinator and a Point-in-Time Count Coordinator....

Ending Homelessness Together: High Level Action Plan

Scottish Government

This Action Plan sets out the direction for real and lasting change towards ending homelessness. Having somewhere to call home is a basic human right and housing is one of the most important factors in any person’s quality of life. This Plan sets out the wide range of measures needed to have in place that help prevent homelessness in the first place and ensure that when it does happen, the needs of people experiencing...

Chronic Homelessness in Melbourne: First-Year Outcomes of Journey to Social Inclusion Phase 2 Study Participants

The Journey to Social Inclusion (J2SI) Phase 2 program, delivered by Sacred Heart Mission (SHM), uses an intensive case management approach focused on capacity building and relationship development to facilitate the movement of chronically homeless people in Melbourne to permanent, stable housing and a pathway to broader social inclusion. The first year of the J2SI Phase 2 program focused on the attainment of permanent...

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